Ray: What happened against Wisconsin (last) Sunday on national TV was, quite simply, an
embarrassment. OSU basketball is nearing a crisis stage.

Thad Matta: zero intensity. He was actually caught smiling and joking with Bo Ryan during a
timeout, and he conceded the game halfway through the second half by putting in Amadeo Della Valle,
Trey McDonald (who actually played decent) and the scrubs.

The team: zero intensity. Giving up 81 and 71 points the past two Sundays is matador defense.
Matta may be assuming they’ll make the NCAA Tournament, but not so fast; they’re not a lock to make
it.

And here’s how bad it might get: According to ESPN, OSU currently has the 32nd-ranked recruiting
class in the country. OSU fans have known for years that Matta isn’t a great in-game, X’s and O’s
coach, but now he can no longer recruit elite talent. Attendance this year has continued to be good
and the crowds loud and cheering, but if the slide in the program continues, you’ll soon see the
Buckeyes playing before half-empty seats as they did a decade ago.

September can’t come soon enough.

— David K. Greer, Gahanna

Ray: After watching the game against Wisconsin, it is obvious to me that Matta has lost this
team. Whatever he says in practice isn’t working, whatever he says during timeouts is falling on
deaf ears, and how many big games do we get outrebounded at both ends of the court?

No hustle, lack of defense, poor shooting and even poorer free-throw shooting. I hope these guys
are getting good grades, because they’re not studying the playbook. And how in the world does Amir
Williams get any playing time at all? He plays like he can’t wait to get three fouls so he can go
sit on the bench.

Please, Bucks, prove me wrong.

— Kevin Reed, Gahanna

Editor: Jerry Hurt (Mailbox, last Sunday) can take a flying leap off a bridge into a river that
is no longer on fire. Really, you criticize Cleveland sports teams while you live in Newark?

The Browns haven’t had a home game blacked out since 1995. You can’t say the same for the
Bengals, who have had games against quality opponents like the Giants and Saints be blacked out due
to poor fan support.

Stay home and watch the Green Wave, please.

— Joe Genco, Gahanna

Mr. Stein: After the latest debacle, against Minnesota on (Thursday), it is apparent that the
Ohio State women’s basketball team is actually getting worse, and on their way to the program’s
first losing season in more than 10 years.

There has been much speculation as to the reason for the team’s woes, as well as the slumps
experienced each of the past two seasons, with many believing it to be a mental issue. The OSU
women indeed have a “head” problem — a head coach problem. The time has come to fire Jim
Foster.

Foster built his reputation at Ohio State by playing a pathetically soft nonconference schedule
and enjoying an overall weak Big Ten Conference. The Buckeyes have repeatedly failed to beat the
elite programs and thus have gained neither national respect nor recognition. Meanwhile, several
schools in the Big Ten have made coaching upgrades and have now surpassed Ohio State in a sport the
school once dominated in the conference.

Simply put, Jim Foster has taken Ohio State women’s basketball as far as he can. If the program
is to move forward and return to dominance within the Big Ten and prominence on the national stage,
a new head coach is needed.

Will OSU make the decisions necessary to restore the program, carrying on the proud tradition of
the likes of Katie Smith, Tracey Hall, Jantel Lavendar and Samantha Prahalis, or will misplaced
loyalty to a coach whose record is a mirage condemn it to a further decline toward
insignificance?

— Marty Flick, Columbus

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